https://jslhr.pubs.asha.org/article.aspx?articleid=1797143Test–Retest Reliability of Eye Tracking in the Visual World Paradigm for the Study of Real-Time Spoken Word RecognitionPurposeResearchers have begun to use eye tracking in the visual world paradigm (VWP) to study clinical differences in language processing, but the reliability of such laboratory tests has rarely been assessed. In this article, the authors assess test–retest reliability of the VWP for spoken word recognition.MethodsParticipants performed an auditory VWP ...2013-08-01T00:00:00ArticleAshley Farris-Trimble

Article | August 01, 2013

Test–Retest Reliability of Eye Tracking in the Visual World Paradigm for the Study of Real-Time Spoken Word Recognition

PurposeResearchers have begun to use eye tracking in the visual world paradigm (VWP) to study clinical differences in language processing, but the reliability of such laboratory tests has rarely been assessed. In this article, the authors assess test–retest reliability of the VWP for spoken word recognition.

MethodsParticipants performed an auditory VWP task in repeated sessions and a visual-only VWP task in a third session. The authors performed correlation and regression analyses on several parameters to determine which reflect reliable behavior and which are predictive of behavior in later sessions.

ResultsResults showed that the fixation parameters most closely related to timing and degree of fixations were moderately-to-strongly correlated across days, whereas the parameters related to rate of increase or decrease of fixations to particular items were less strongly correlated. Moreover, when including factors derived from the visual-only task, the performance of the regression model was at least moderately correlated with Day 2 performance on all parameters (R > .30).

ConclusionThe VWP is stable enough (with some caveats) to serve as an individual measure. These findings suggest guidelines for future use of the paradigm and for areas of improvement in both methodology and analysis.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by National Institutes of Health Grants DC000242, DC008089, and DC011669. Many thanks to Bruce Tomblin for help discussions about the issues raised by reliability, Kristian Markon for statistical assistance with the communality analyses, Dan McEchron for administrative support and assistance with recruiting, and the members of the MACLab at the University of Iowa for helpful discussions. Thanks also to our participants.

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